species which I have now acquired through a very
kind friend (here on the forum) is this male of
Archeoattacus edwardsii. Of all the "atlas species"
of giant moths this one I feel is the most elegantly
colorful of them all. This long desired fine example
was a long time coming....
I was first made aware of the species via a moth book
published in the mid-70's. The book was seen at my town's
library during a visit. I was only in my mid-teens at the
time and was "awestruck" by its elegance. I could only
think to myself that I've got to get one of those someday !
While Attacus atlas and Attacus lorquini have long been
staples in the insect trade (here in the U.S.); this species
for a long time was not even offered. It was not really
until the late 90's that specimens started showing up here
and only sporadically thereafter.
Commonly known as Edward's Atlas moth it has been
mistakenly called Attacus edwardsii in several books
and publications through the years. Its proper GENUS
name Archeoattacus was first described by Watson in
1914 although, the SPECIES name edwardsii would not
be given it by Francis Buchanan White until 1859.
There are only 2 recognised species within the genus
Archeoattacus with edwardsii being the far more wide-
spread in geographic range. The other species which is
endemic to Borneo (so far as I know) is A. staudingeri
and it is rarely seen in private collections although, that
does not make it rare in nature necessarily. Perhaps, just
localised....
Anyway, the deep, rich, colors and beautiful wing shape
of this species surely make it a standout amongst the
many beautiful moths of the family Saturniidae.
